


Summer’s Heat or Winter’s Cold

by LeoAscending



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, This isn't taking place in Westeros, We're in the Midwest people!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-13
Updated: 2020-02-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:15:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22688356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeoAscending/pseuds/LeoAscending
Summary: In the words of Avril Lavigne - He was a boy, she was a girl. Can that make it anymore obvious? He's the future of one of the nation's top football programs and she's the younger sister of his best friend. Not to mention she has a boyfriend. And doesn't seem at all impressed with how many touchdowns he can throw...
Relationships: Jon Snow/Sansa Stark, Jon Snow/Ygritte (but not very much I promise), Robb Stark/Margaery Tyrell
Comments: 6
Kudos: 46





	Summer’s Heat or Winter’s Cold

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This is the first time I'm writing a fanfiction ever. I've been a reader/lurker/commenter/kudos-er a long time in multiple fandoms and have finally decided to take the plunge! Why have I decided to do this now? A question I'm sure no one is asking - well, I've wanted to, but I've been too nervous to hit submit. A New Year's resolution of mine was to do something out of my comfort zone. So here we are!
> 
> This story is (very) loosely based on my own life. All places mentioned are real and I obviously don't own any of them. Nor do I own the characters I'm using in this story. They belong 100% to the genius who is G.R.R.M. I'm very grateful to be using their likeness to do with as I please in this story that's been marinating in my head an incredibly long time. Sorry in advance for any typos. Hope you enjoy! This story is rated M because I like to swear (therefore my characters will be swearing) and in case I decide to add some less clothed extracurricular activities in the future.

It was two days before Christmas and snow was falling gently outside. Sansa lounged on the chaise in her father’s office, leisurely studying for her first semester AP Psychology exam that would be held in the new year with her teacup Maltese, Lady, resting at her feet. Why Beaumont, the all-girl school that both she and Arya, her younger sister, attended chose to have finals after Christmas break she would never know. The smell of sugar cookies her mother, Catelyn, and younger brothers Bran and Rickon were making in the kitchen wafted through the office’s cracked double doors. The sound of Arya playing videogames in the basement and singing off-key to Frosty the Snowman carried lightly up the stairs.

Christmas was Sansa’s favorite time of year in Cleveland, and not just because of the two-week break from school. She loved the soft, colorful glow of Christmas lights as they illuminated the December air, she loved the long lines of children waiting for Santa at the mall, she loved the smell of the large Fraser Fir tree in the foyer and the ornaments that hung on it, even if her siblings refused to decorate the tree the way Sansa and her mother directed them to. She loved going to church and seeing the decorations the nuns and other volunteers had put up during the time between the end of Advent and Christmas Eve service, she loved singing along with the choir to the Christmas songs at mass as loud as she possibly could with her father, Ned. She even loved how busy her job at the mall got during the Christmas season.

Sansa wasn’t alone in thinking this way; all of her siblings loved Christmas —their parents had ensured it. Each child had a special stocking, that Catelyn had painstakingly knit for them, hung up along the fireplace and they were always allowed to choose a unique side dish to be included as part of the Christmas feast, and Ned liked to create small traditions such as a Christmas-themed family game nights or a sleepover for the kids in the basement as they watched all the Lord of the Rings extended editions movies in a row a few days before Christmas in the home theater. This Christmas, though, was shaping up to be a bit different. Their oldest son Robb had not come home for Christmas yet. He had called a few weeks earlier letting them know that his internship at Ernst & Young would have him staying around his college campus for longer than he wanted, and was wondering if the family would at least postpone the marathon until he returned. Catelyn and Ned had, of course, agreed. Sansa, however, was the only person who knew the real reason why Robb was late for Christmas.

When she had asked over text late one night, Robb had confided in Sansa that he wanted a few carefree days to enjoy spending time with his fraternity brothers without the looming threat of failing a finance exam hanging over his head, or the need to wake up early for work the next day. Not that he had ever failed a test or was ever late. Robb was good at everything, and as only a freshman at Ohio State, it was a huge deal when he was chosen for an interview, and then how much bigger of an opportunity he received when he was actually offered the position, but Sansa knew how disappointed he with the limited time he had been able to spend getting to know his fellow Phi Psi pledges with his enormous workload.

Today, though, was the day that Robb was coming home. It had been months since Sansa had seen her older brother; she had been unable to get off work at Abercrombie & Fitch to go with the rest of her family the week they had traveled down to Columbus for the Ohio State vs. Penn State game (Ohio State won of course – Sansa checked her phone as often as she could behind the mountain of clothes she had been assigned to fold and refold). Her parents had offered to pick him up, but Robb had declined and mentioned he would be traveling with one of his friends he met in his Biology 101 class on the MegaBus to Cleveland, and then taking an Uber to the house from the bus stop. A little strange, but nothing too out of the ordinary.

Sansa was just getting into the nuts and bolts of Jean Piaget’s Cognitive Development theory when she heard a car come to a stop outside and the slamming of multiple doors. Sansa stood and the textbook she was reading from slid from her lap, landing on the floor with a thud, rousing Lady from her slumber. Sansa leapt out the office doors and threw herself down the hall, sliding to a stop in front of the makeshift cookie station that was the kitchen counter.

“Sansa, you know you’re not supposed to run in the house,” her mother said, not looking up from the Christmas tree cookie she was meticulously icing with red and green frosting.

“Robb’s here!” Sansa replied as an explanation, “I just heard a car outside.”

Her mother’s head shot up and quickly ushered Bran and Rickon over to the kitchen sink to hopefully wash off some of the icing that had accumulated more on their hands and faces than on the actual cookies themselves, shooed their two basset hounds, Summer and Shaggydog, away from the cookie crumb mess on the floor and into the backyard, and called down to the basement for Arya. Sansa made her way over to the front door and threw it open right has a young man, who was decidedly not her brother Robb, had his fingers inches away from the doorbell.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you” said Sansa, “It makes the dogs crazy.”

“Dogs?” asked the unfamiliar man as he quickly retracted his fingers and brought his arms to his sides, drawing attention to a large Nike duffel bag at his feet.

“Yes. Dogs. Five of them to be exact—"

“Who are you? You look familiar,” interrupted Arya, who had managed to sidle up to her older sister and peer around her older sister’s shoulders with Sansa none the wiser.

“Arya!” cried Sansa.

“Sansa!” mimicked her younger sister.

“Uh…I’m Robb’s friend Jon,” the stranger on the front porch said with an awkward wave, “Robb invited me over for Christmas. He said you were all fine with it?” Behind him came the sound of Robb slamming the trunk of the Uber closed and the crunch of the freshly fallen snow beneath his worn L.L. Bean boots.

“Robb, you said you were riding the Megabus home with a friend, not that this friend would be _staying_ with us for Christmas,” Catelyn said with a frown, coming up behind her daughters. Jon’s smile fell as his eyes quickly glanced from Catelyn’s face, to Sansa’s crossed arms, and nervously turned to Robb beside him.

“I thought you said everything was ok,” he whispered accusingly.

“Trust me! It’s fine!” Robb replied cheerfully, wrapping his arm around Jon’s shoulders and pushing past his mother and sisters. “Let’s put our bags in my room and grab something to eat. Can’t have the future of OSU athletics going hungry! I smell sugar cookies!”

Sansa noticed a slight blush staining Jon’s cheek. He caught Sansa’s eye quickly before he was dragged up the stairs by Robb. She took the opportunity to take in Jon’s dark, just-shy-of-needing-a-haircut locks, his red and black flannel shirt that seemed to cover some serious muscle – toned, not too bulky, and his faded Levi jeans that hugged what looked to be a particularly nice behind just before he was pulled around the hallway corner. Sansa waited until Jon and Rob were out of ear shot before sighing under her breath.

“Looks like it’s not going to just be family for Christmas this year,” she said to no one in particular, a little disappointed that she would have to be sharing Robb’s attention the limited time he was home, but not entirely unhappy with the prospect of a mildly (ok, very) attractive man spending the holiday at her house.

“Don’t be mean! Jon seems great!” shouted Arya, already racing after her older brother and his friend, “I can’t wait to introduce you to all the dogs! There’s Nymeria—she’s mine! A Husky! And then there’s Grey Wind, honestly Robb what a dumb name, he's a German Shepherd, and then my younger brothers’ two basset hounds and then Sansa’s annoying Maltese—" Arya’s voice faded as she made her way upstairs and down the hall.

“It _is_ a little weird that Robb hasn’t mentioned Jon before. No matter – I’ll call Ned at work and let him know that Robb’s brought company,” Catelyn said as she and Sansa retreated to the kitchen. “Bran, Rickon! Stop feeding the dogs cookies! They’ve their own treats.” Her two youngest sons had matching looks of surprise at being caught and sheepishly returned the offending cookies to the tray. “Sansa, I’m sending you to the store. Looks like we’re going to need more food for the holidays,” Catelyn said as she quickly jotted down a list of groceries she needed on a post-it before handing it to Sansa,

“And pick up some extra snacks for the movie night tonight while you’re at it?” Bran added, “Maybe some Smartfood White Cheddar popcorn?”

Sansa plucked the list from her mother’s outstretched hand and grabbed the keys to her mini cooper from the collection of hooks beside the garage door. As she backed the car out of the driveway, she couldn’t help but glance up at her brother’s window directly above the garage. Arya was gesturing wildly to an amused Robb and a smiling Jon.

“Arya’s right, he does look familiar. He has a nice smile and seemed polite…” Sansa thought to herself fleetingly before shaking her head, putting her car in drive, and heading down the street to the nearest Giant Eagle, humming along to Mariah Carey’s _All I want for Christmas is You_ on the radio.

 _‘_ _Cause I just want you here tonight_ _  
‘Holding on to me so tight  
‘What more can I do  
‘Oh, Baby all I want for Christmas is you’_

* * *

A little under than an hour later found Sansa comparing the nutritional value of spaghetti sauces when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She glanced down at her Apple Watch to see who was calling and saw a cluster of heart and face emojis. Sansa rolled her eyes and smiled before tapping the green phone icon.

“Hey Margie!”

“Hey! Whatcha doing?

“Ugh. Nothing. Just picking up some groceries for my mom.”

“…Why? Weren’t you just there like a few days ago? Didn’t you snapchat me video of Arya trying to reach the top shelf of the candy isle and failing miserably?”

“Ha Ha. Very funny. But yeah – I did. Robb brought a friend home with him from college and—”

“A GIRLFRIEND?” Margaery screamed

“God. Your voice is piercing. Shut UP you’re on speaker through my watch.”

“Oh. Shit (shoot) sorry—”

“TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION,” Sansa said, loudly cutting her friend off, “It’s a _boy friend_. Like a friend who’s also a boy. Name is Jon something. Mom’s worried we wouldn’t have enough food. Which is ridiculous because she literally _always_ buys more than we ever need, but you know how she is.”

“Sans. Don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re exactly like her Miss ‘I’m only inviting 3 people over for a sleepover, but damnit I need a fruit tray, a veggie tray, some buff chicken dip—I should get another ranch for that—maybe I should make some frozen meatballs, and what about some ice cream—”

“Ok. Ok I get it,” Sansa laughed.

“Sooo…what’s he like?”

“What’s who like?”

“Jon what’s his name obviously!”

“He seems…nice? Kinda quiet? I don’t know I literally saw him for all of 3 minutes before Robb was dragging him up to his room.”

“But was he cute? Come on Sansa gimme something here!”

“I mean I guess? I have a boyfriend so it’s not like it matters—”

“Just because you have a boyfriend doesn’t mean you’re blind or dead!” exclaimed Margaery, “So what did he look like?”

“Average height, dark, kinda longish hair, some muscle…He’s objectively cute ok?”

“Perfect. I’m on my way over!”

“Wait. _What_? Marge I’m still at the store! You can’t just show up—”

“Your parents love me!” trilled Margaery, slightly muffled as she fumbled with what Sansa could only guess was her winter coat and boots.

“Look. We’re doing that LOTR marathon we always do every Christmas tonight now that Robb’s home. As long as you’re ok with that and DON’T talk through the entire movie, you can come over.”

“Fab!” Margaery replied. “Oh, hey, my mom and I made some sugar cookies today if you want me to bring this over--?

“Oh _God_ no more sugar cookies PLEASE,” Sighed Sansa. “I’m checking out now. Be home in twenty minutes?”

“Perfect. See you soon!” Sansa hung up and immediately called her mother.

“Mom, Marge is coming over to hang out,” Sansa said without preamble when her mom answered.

“Of course, she is. You know she’s always welcome. Do know if she’ll be staying the night?”

“I don’t know. Probably.”

“Well, we’ll need more eggs for tomorrow…” her mom trailed off.

“Yeah, yeah I’ll pick some up.”

“Are you sure? It would save me so much time!" as if getting Sansa to do it wasn't the reason why she brought it up in the first place. "Sounds good sweetie. See you when you get home! Love you!”

Sansa sighed, “Love you too mom.”

* * *

Sansa, Robb, Arya, Rickon, and Bran were all crowded around the kitchen island, eating cookies when Margaery burst through the side door

“Party’s here!” she exclaimed, holding up a huge cookie tin.

“Marge, I told you not to bring any more cookies,” Sansa said exasperatedly.

“I know, but when do I ever listen,” she replied cheekily, giving Sansa a hug. Margaery greeted the rest of the Starks in turn, making sure to throwing a saucy wink at Robb, who just chuckled good-naturedly in return – he was used to her antics by now. “So - where’s this ‘Jon’ I’ve heard so much about?” Sansa blushed.

“I’ve literally told her _nothing_ about him because I know _nothing_ about him. Marge don’t exaggerate!” She was cut off by Margaery’s audible gasp as Jon walked into the kitchen; Sansa desperately hoping he didn’t catch the last bit of their conversation.

“Oh. My. _Fucking_. GOD. You’re Jon Snow! Sans, you didn’t tell me your brother’s friend was Jon Freaking Snow! _Why_ didn’t you tell me he was Jon Snow?”

Sansa’s eyes went wide and looked to her brothers and sister for support, “Uh because I didn’t know his name was Jon Snow? Who’s Jon Snow?” Bran shrugged in reply.

Margaery grabbed Sansa’s shoulders and began to shake her violently, “He’s _only_ the QB in waiting for THE Ohio State University football team! Number one overall recruit in the State of Ohio and one of the top quarterback recruits in the nation! Literally every school wanted to sign him, but he chose us over the likes of Nick Saban and Dabo Swinney and decided to stay home!” Margaery trailed off as she looked around at everyone’s stunned faces. “What? My brothers really like OSU football!” Sansa snorted.

“More like your whole family’s been going there for generations and there’s a whole freaking college named after your grandfather. AND your dad’s had season football tickets for God knows how long.” Margaery smiled and shrugged her shoulders before turning to Jon, who looked like he’d rather be anywhere else on the planet than standing in the Stark kitchen at that moment.

“My Dad and my brothers aren’t going to believe this! Can I take a selfie with you?” Margaery squealed. Jon didn’t even have time to respond before Margaery’s face was pressed up against his and an iPhone was shoved into his line of sight. “Thanks! You guys ready to play USC in the Cotton Bowl?” she chirped.

“S’fine,” Jon replied. “It’s not like this is the first time someone’s wanted a picture with me. And yeah, I think so—that’s actually why I’m spending Christmas here instead of home. They went up to Michigan to visit family before the game. We all thought it would be too much for me to go with them, and they’re going to meet me in Texas for the game,” he continued as he shoved his hands in his pockets. Sansa did NOT notice at all how big those hands were. Not at all.

“Can we PLEASE go watch the movie now?” Arya wined as she shoved off the island stool. “It’s already 5:00 and It’s only going to take TWELVE HOURS to watch them all WITHOUT BREAKS! I want to get at least a little sleep tomorrow!” Everyone laughed as they followed her down to the basement, Sansa and Margaery bringing up the rear.

“Objectively cute my ASS!” Margaery whispered, poking Sansa in the side “I would climb that man like a pole!”

“Jersey chaser,” Sansa replied, sticking her tongue out at her best friend.

“Oh, don’t lie to me! You totally would too!” Margaery laughed.

“It doesn’t matter because I –”

“Have a boyfriend! Yeah, yeah, I know! Doesn’t mean you can’t look!” She winked at Sansa’s shocked face. Margaery turned and made her way to the basement stairwell, “Come on, let’s not keep our fans waiting!”

Sansa made to follow her friend. Margaery was right. There was no harm in appreciating the way a perfectly proportioned man looked (Sansa’s not blind after all). It’s not like she or Margaery was going to tell anyone. Sansa nodded to herself. What Harry Hardyng doesn’t know won’t hurt him.

**Author's Note:**

> Whew! That's chapter 1! I have no idea how long this will be. I'll probably just see where the story takes me. My goal is to update once a week, but you know how life gets when you try to make plans. 
> 
> I know lots of people on here have a Tumblr, but I've never been able to figure it out. Best place to find me is on [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/manning_thefort/?hl=en) or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/manning_thefort?lang=en) . Sorry in advance for all the pictures of my dogs on Instagram and policial retweets on Twitter (we are in an election year people!). Or if you feel more comfortable, shoot me a message or leave a comment on here!


End file.
